World’s Biggest Reclining Buddha

The night before I met Harold, a French Swiss guy, at dinner.  We decided to go and see the sites around Mawlamyine.  First we went to the World War II Cemetery where the soldiers who build the ‘Death Railway’ are commemorated.  It wasn’t as grand as the Cemetery in Yangon but my primary reason for going was the link between it and the Japanese.

We then headed to the World’s Biggest Reclining Buddha.  It lies at a massive 140 meters long.  They are currently constructing a 180 meter long Reclining Buddha opposite this one.  Inside there are murals and statues depicting images from Buddha’s former lives.  To me some were very grotesque or even macabre, and not for family viewing.  Harold had to leave in a rush to make his bus.  I stayed longer and so bumped into Holly, an English girl on a gap year before starting her studies.  We decided to walk home and consequently got caught in a monsson downpour.  The upside is we found a place that sells delicious pancakes.